Green light for removal of defunct Verrazano-Narrows bridge toll booths.

The obsolete toll booths on the Brooklyn bound lanes of the Verrazano-Narrows bridge have finally been slated for removal. Federal, city, state and MTA officials are working together as part of a yearlong, $2.5 million project to demolish the first eight east-bound toll booths that have not been used since one-way tolling began on the bridge in 1986.

The project also includes removing concrete islands, canopy structures, electronic signs, and concrete and asphalt restoration.

Construction yard explodes after worker saws through box of detonators.

UK construction website Construction Enquirer is reporting that a construction yard exploded when one of their workers sawed through a box of disguarded detonators. Workers at the Inverness yard owned by construction company T. M. Fraser had no idea what was in the sealed storage container which could have been lying on the site for 12 years.

Debris flew into nearby gardens and the area was sealed off for several hours and local residents evacuated to a nearby community centre before the Royal Logistics Corps bomb disposal unit from Edinburgh removed the quarry-type detonators.

The Inverness Courier reported a worker was attempting to open the sealed container with a power saw and he suffered facial injuries.

Inverness Central Councillor Peter Corbett said it was an alarming incident and called on the Health and Safety Executive to highlight to construction companies the danger of detonators stored in their yards unbeknown to them.

Read the full story here.

Exclusive video from initial stages of Get Carter car park demolition.

Our thanks once again to Chris Dobson and the team at Thompsons of Prudhoe for allowing us to bring you this superb video from the early stages of their work at Gateshead’s “Get Carter” car park.

“Get Carter” Car Park Demolition – Week 1. from Thompsons of Prudhoe on Vimeo.

UK demolition contractor makes zero waste pledge.

“We have been exploring ways to increase recycling rates further to see if it is possible to achieve ‘nil landfill’,” explains health, safety and environmental director Lynda Robinson. “Currently the majority of our demolition waste is recycled; bricks, wood, metal, plasterboards for instance are easily segregated on site, ready to be reused or recycled. The difficulty is recycling the small elements of demolition debris or mixed waste.”

To overcome this problem, Complete Demolition approached secondary fuel producer, The Waste Exchange – which has have developed the perfect solution for recycling 100% of demolition waste.

As the only company of its kind in the North West, the newly formed ‘Waste Exchange’ is capable of converting ‘residue’ waste, which would have been destined for landfill, into high-quality flock and biomass fuel. These secondary fuels will then be used to power cement kilns.

“We are extremely excited about working with The Waste Exchange, they provide an ideal solution for recycling our demolition waste,” Robinson continues. “As well as helping Complete Demolition reach its target of ‘nil landfill’ , The Waste Exchange is helping to facilitate a significant reduction in the reliance on CO2 producing fossil fuels for the future.”

Bridge demolition company undecided over which end to begin.

In a meeting held at Mount Airy’s N.C. Department of Transportation Office last Monday, July 26, Elkin Town Manager Lloyd Payne reviewed a pre-construction agenda for the demolition of the Hugh G. Chatham Bridge with the project’s contractors and DOT officials.

The meeting gave Payne the opportunity to air questions and concerns regarding the bridge’s expected year-long demolition, which is set to begin one week from today, on Aug. 9.

Last Monday’s meeting also provided answers logistical issues between the town and the contractor, DLB, Inc. of Hillsville, Va. Among these points were determining the starting point of the bridge’s demolition, public access to Crater Park during the demolition process and road closings in the downtown Elkin area.

According to Payne, the contractor has yet to decide whether the demolition will begin on the Elkin or the Jonesville side of the Hugh Chatham bridge. Although only one week away, DLB, Inc. is still in the process of deciding which town’s side of the bridge will be first to be sectioned off for demolition.

“Every document I’d seen to this point had indicated that construction would begin on Elkin side…but the DOT did confirm that the way the contract was written allowed the contractor to start on either side,” said Payne.

Read the full story here.

Landmark Coke bottling plant to be demolished; work starts Monday.

A former Coke bottling plant in North Carolina will welcome demolition crews on Monday. The following video captures the story.

Work finally starts on demolition of South Tyneside eyesore.

The massive Reyrolle office building in Hebburn, which towers over the town’s Metro station, has stood empty for four years, sparking calls from angry residents and councillors for the seven-storey complex to be flattened.

But asbestos had to be stripped from the 1960s building, and there were also complex negotiations between owners Persimmon Homes and transport officials, because of the close proximity of railway lines.

Earlier this year, police warned that youngsters were dicing with death by trespassing in the building, with four teenagers even spotted on the roof of the property, which was once home to more than 200 members of staff of the Department of Work and Pensions.

Coun Joe Abbott, for the Hebburn North ward, who has pressed for demolition of the building for several years, said: “I’m glad that the work has at long last started.

“Various issues have slowed down the work, and red panels on the building, which are fixed with asbestos-based cement, have still to be removed.

“This work will not happen overnight, and I should think it could take more than three months before the whole building is flattened, but at least demolition has started.

Read more here.

Second blast fails to fell remaining section of Allegheny Bridge.

An attempt to implode the remaining sections of the old turnpike bridge over the Allegheny River this morning left a part of the structure still standing.

Most of the old bridge was imploded back on July 13, but there were two remaining sections of the Allegheny River Bridge left standing.

Crews tried to bring down those sections at 10 a.m. today. Initial reports suggest that while one side came down as planned, the other side did not.

A raw video of the apparently failed implosion can be found here, while a more detailed and telling video can be viewed here.

NFDC president David Darsey to address EDA conference in Stockholm.

Together with Erith colleague Stuart Accleton, Darsey will be presenting a paper on how his company tackled what was Europe’s largest demolition project; the deconstruction of the former Lafarge cement works in Northfleet, Kent.

“The clearance of this huge cement works on the banks of the River Thames provided a real opportunity for Erith to demonstrate its skills in demolition, recycling and remediation,” Darsey says. “In addition to the safe removal of 4,000 tonnes of asbestos and the dramatic blow down of three redundant chimneys, Erith obtained the maximum value for Lafarge from the reuse and recycling of plant and materials worldwide, achieving £9 million of recycling benefit our client.”

Darsey and Accleton join an impressive line-up of high profile industry speakers at the event that is scheduled to coincide with the DemCon exhibition in Stockholm, Sweden at the beginning of September.

Further details of the packed programme can be found here.

Brothers fined over accident that left worker with horrific injuries.

Alan Hind, from Corrie Common near Lockerbie, was helping to demolish an industrial building in Carlisle when he fell six metres to the concrete floor below. The 28-year-old’s sight, hearing and personality have been permanently affected.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Robert and Eric Murray following the incident at Watts Yard on London Road in Carlisle on 27 February 2008. Carlisle Crown Court heard that Robert Murray was in overall control of the project, and that his brother, Eric, was in charge of dismantling the building Mr Hind was working on.

In the fall, Alan Hind suffered 16 skull fractures, broke his jaw in three places, fractured his wrist, damaged a kidney and is now deaf in his right ear and blind in his left eye. Parts of his brain were so badly damaged that they had to be removed.

“Mr Hind is lucky to be alive following his fall, which could and should have been prevented. He sustained multiple injuries which will affect him for the rest of his life,” said David Charnock, HSE Construction Inspector in Cumbria. “Unfortunately neither Robert nor Eric Murray took the necessary safety precautions and Mr Hind suffered horrific injuries as a consequence. The workers they employed were casual labourers and did not have the skills or experience to work on industrial roofs. As this incident demonstrates, carrying out work at height can result in serious injury and even death if not properly planned. Steps must be taken to prevent people falling, and everyone involved in the work must be properly trained.”

Read the full story here.